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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. tube — a container
  4. suit — to fit
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. prune — to trim
  8. prune — to trim
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. suit — clothes
  14. branch — a division
  15. snap — to click
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. mate — a friend
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. mate — to breed
  21. rash — hasty
  22. rash — a series
  23. tube — the underground
  24. suit — in cards

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com